I first heard about ScratchBack when it was still a dream in Jim Kukral’s eye and a brief mention in a blog post back a few months ago. As Jim phrased it then it is a new way for bloggers outside of the top tier to make money on their blogs. Not much more was said at that time about the service but every once in awhile Jim would let folks know via Twitter how development for this new service was going and when we could expect the beta to be available.

Well it turns out today was the day that Jim let his newest baby loose on the web for bloggers to sign up and give the service a run through. Along with that we also got to finally find out what ScratchBack was all about and how it works. As it says on the ScratchBack FAQ page:

What Is ScratchBack?
ScratchBack is an online “tipping” system. It allows you, the publisher, to accept tips and “give back” links or images in return (all links are nofollow). You name your price on your tips, and you earn money from every interaction through our easy-to-use automated system.

Now I have to admit it was my head that I was scratching when I read this and to a certain extent I still am. If I understand this a visitor to WinExtra can now click on one of the Get In My Top Spots links in the widget at which point hey can add a link back to their site along with a brief blurb that can explain what the destination site is about and this will only cost them whatever the blog owner has decide the link value is - which in my case is $2.50 (for now). Or as the ScratchBack FAQ once more says:

So People Are Buying Ads On My Site?
Technically, yes, but not really. You’re not really “selling” ads, you’re accepting tips. Advertisers (your readers) do get something in return; a link or an image that displays on your site, but it’s not an ad buy. They’re “scratching your back”. Example: “I love this gal’s blog, it has great information. I wish I could tip them and give them a few bucks to say thank you.” Now you can offer that to them, with some fun benefits.

I will admit that it is an interesting idea and because it isn’t relying on an advertising network that typically is more interested in high volume blogs rather than small timers like WinExtra it gives visitors to the blog a way to show their support for the blog and get something back in return. The only big problem I see about this idea is the possibility of being abused by spammers which means it’ll be up to the blog owner to keep an eye on it. The FAQ does mention something along the lines of what to do if some-one leaves something you don’t like listed and the fact that if you do delete the link there is no refunds to whoever bought the link. I guess that would be one good deterrent .

I’m not sure how this will take off but given Jim’s track record in online marketing and the such I will be giving the service a try for a few months to see what happens. You can find the TopSpot widget over in the right hand sidebar at the bottom (as soon as I get a WordPress problem figured out I’ll move it up a bit).

So if you are looking to try out a new way to earn a few bucks drop by the ScratchBack site and sign up and grab yourself a TopSpot widget for your blog.

Update Dec. 29, 2007: I’ve stopped using the Scratchback - Top Spots - widget for the time being.

Listening to: Tiesto - Magik 2 - Story Of The Fall (Mixed By DJ Tiesto)

Conversation Tags: blogs, advertising, ScratchBack